The protest price tag 

(and a citizens’ response)

Telegraph Journal  ::  5 February 2014

Last fall’s violent confrontation in Kent County is once again top-of-mind among New Brunswick residents, as Premier David Alward has become increasingly vocal in his support of continued shale gas exploration in New Brunswick – no matter the opinion of the small minority who clashed with the RCMP last October.

Last fall’s confrontation between the GNB and citizens of Kent County and their supporters from throughout the maritimes was the result of Premier David Alward who was not willing to listen to or respect the 16 to 1 vote of Kent County mayor and LSDs representing Service District 6. These men and women stood up with the citizens they represent and demanded a moratorium on further unconventional gas exploration and development in Kent County.

Now, just as the shale gas question is starting to feel like the ballot issue in the run-up to the next provincial vote, the cost of ensuring public safety in the face of the Kent County protests has come in. And the final tab wasn’t cheap – it cost the provincial Department of Public Safety more than $9.4 million to allocate sufficient RCMP resources to Kent County.

The $9.4 million represents the cost that David Alward and the PCNB were willing to pay with our tax dollars to intimidate and arrest citizens of New Brunswick who did not agree with their decision to bring this hazardous, toxic and dangerous industry into their neighborhoods and near their homes without their informed consent.

In considering such a hefty bill, it is important to remember the events leading up to the October clash. The government of New Brunswick gave a private firm consent to undertake seismic testing in southern New Brunswick, and ensured that New Brunswick residents opposed to shale gas development held a right to protest. Unfortunately, that right to protest grew into something very different, as civil unrest replaced the much more basic freedom to protest.

The Alward government did not bring just any private industry into our province.  He signed a pact with a foreign company whose only obligation is to their out-of-province stakeholders. SWN’s track record as well as the entire unconventional shale gas industry has been far from safe or responsible.  Those who would be forced to live in such an environment find their very way of life threatened.  When David Alward and the PCNB government decided to ignore their concerns and belittle those citizens, it was Mr. Alward set the stage for civil disobedience.

The situation at the anti-shale encampment had become increasingly tense in the months leading up to the intervention by the Mounties. Regular highway traffic was interrupted on a number of occasions, and acts of vandalism were escalating. On the morning of the conflict, police cars were set afire, and countless weapons were seized. It’s a small miracle nobody was seriously hurt in the clash.

From day one, the citizens who supported and blockaded the SWN equipment in the Irving compound in Rexton acknowledged that what they were doing was an act of peaceful civil disobedience and were willing to be arrested.  It was either the Alward government or the RCMP who decided to prolong the standoff to the point that a significant confrontation was inevitable.  By waiting, they allowed those with ill intent - whether from outside or the RCMP itself - to infiltrate the compound.

Because shale gas continues to be an emotional issue, let’s collectively agree to hold the discussion firmly in the public sphere, and not relegate it to a protest campsite in rural Kent County.

Those who strive to protect the way of life we all enjoy and cherish have continuously sought a dialogue with the Alward government though many channels to no avail.  In order to have a “public discussion” it is imperative that all sides are willing to listen to each other and reach a consensus of action - that is the very definition of a democracy.

We already have working shale gas wells in the province, and they are quietly contributing to both the province’s jobs picture and the government’s finances. If the seismic testing results are positive, we can – if we choose – have a whole lot more wells, and produce real value for the provincial economy. But this is ultimately a choice that should be made at the ballot box by the majority of New Brunswick voters – not a small minority at a protest campsite.

The gas wells referenced are in the community of Penobsquis. While they do provide a few jobs and some small royalty payments, they have adversely affected the relationships between residents, affected their health and well being, reduced their property values and even their ability to sell their properties if they wish to leave.

Even if the seismic testing results are positive, a 10-year moratorium on further exploration and development should be initiated until much more baseline evidence can be peer reviewed to ensure ALL the citizens of New Brunswick understand what is ultimately at stake and can grant their consent to proceed.

The PCNB 2010 platform included the passage of a Referendum Act to allow citizens of New Brunswick to vote on issues that could have profound consequences.  This would have required a full disclosure of all impacts of the issue - positive as well as negative.  Perhaps if the PCNB platform promise had been enacted, we all could have avoided the angst and divisiveness that the Alward government created and the unfortunate of this past summer.

Richard Lachance & Eveline Haché

Cocagne NB

743-6582

Ten Days In June

Sackville Tribune-Post

14 June 2013

Ten days in June 2013 have provided a fascinating picture of our democracy and how we respond in Canadian society to peaceful protest.  The opposition to shale gas development in the province turned a page at this time when protest went from gathering at meetings to discuss strategies to challenge government plans for shale gas, to actively blocking the industry's "thumper" trucks used for the seismic testing that locates underground gas reserves.  Overnight unconventional gas mining or fracking became front page news and the top story on local television news reports.

In Kent County shale gas protesters are local English and French residents with a strong presence from the Aboriginal community.  These people feel connected on this issue because the N.B. government has shown itself to be short-sighted  and unwilling to engage in a meaningful consultation with the public.

  

Ten years of observing shale gas projects elsewhere have indicated that they put people's health and the environment at risk.  For most of us the promised, but not proven, economic benefits of shale gas exploration don't influence us at all in its favor.

  

Those of us who choose to stand our ground in an effort to protect our rights and those of the environment have been criticized recently for not caring about the future of this province and the well being of its citizens.  To the contrary, those opposed to shale gas care a great deal, but would rather see us move in a greener direction, using the resources of wind, water, sun, geothermal and tidal  energy.  The N.B. tourism industry, feeble at present but still a player in the economy, would be devastated by shale gas wells dotting the landscape. With the stability of our climate already compromised we will have to move in this direction in the near future anyway.

We don't have to accept without question the misguided notion that shale gas exploration is the most desirable use of the natural resources available to us. For those who would like to learn more, the following websites will provide valuable information;

- knowshalegasnb.ca

- frackingandhealth.ca

- conservationcouncil.ca

- dangersoffracking.com

- realclimate.org

- skepticalscience.com

Donna Mclellan

for the Tantramar Alliance Against Hydrofracking

Seven Months of Shale Gas Resistance in New Brunswick

by Miles Howe

On June 9th, Suzanne Patles was arrested for mischief while praying in front of SWN's seismic testing equipment. It was the third arrest of the summer. Photo by Miles Howe

Segewa't Na'gu'set, one of the fire keepers at the sacred fire encampment, was among 12 people arrested at a peaceful protest along highway 126 on June 21st, National Aboriginal Day. Photo by Miles Howe

On June 25th, I was the first responder at this shot-hole driller fire. SWN estimates that the damages to equipment from this fire total $380,000 and the RCMP continue to treat the case as unsolved arson. Photo by Miles Howe

A full SWN work contingent was blockaded on July 28th for over eight hours. The night marked a turning point, as it was the first time the Mi'kmaq Warriors Society acted in conjunction with anti-shale gas activists. Two days later, SWN announced it was leaving Kent County for the summer. Photo by Miles Howe

For three weeks, from late September to mid-October, activists managed to blockade key pieces of SWN's seismic testing equipment, including five "thumper" trucks. On October 17th, RCMP brutally attacked the peaceful encampment, firing less-lethal rounds, pepper spraying activists and arresting 40 people. Pictured is Mi'kmaq War Chief Seven Bernard, after being shot twice in the legs by less-lethal rounds. Photo by Mile Howe

K'JIPUKTUK (HALIFAX)—In early June, I walked with Suzanne Patles from Eskasoni First Nation and two Mi'kmaq women from Elsipogtog First Nation along Highway 126 near Harcourt, New Brunswick. People told us not to go, not to approach the seismic testing trucks; that people had been arrested earlier in the day; that there would be trouble.

I knew Patles, to some degree, as a shy and hesitant person but highly intelligent. At Millbrook First Nation, earlier in March, I had watched her read from prepared documents as Shelly Young and Jean Sock starved themselves in an attempt to get the Nova Scotia Mi'kmaq chiefs to withdraw from the Made-in-Nova Scotia Process and the risk of a modern-day treaty it presented. I had strained to hear her above the din of the crowd in the Porcupine Lodge.

In a few years writing for the Media Co-op, I've done a bit of frontlines journalism and developed a small sense of heightened awareness when it comes to situations where resistance meets authority. Sometimes, often smoking a cigarette, I can almost taste electricity in the air.

As I watched her approach a line of green safety vest-clad police officers, behind whom were idling five seismic testing trucks, or "thumpers," my first thought was to put myself between her and what I saw coming. I could taste electricity.

“Got your camera?” Patles asked me calmly, as she opened a pouch of tobacco and began to sprinkle a line of brown flakes across one lane of highway. I did, and obligingly began snapping shots.

New Brunswick Anti-Shale Gas Alliance wants 'unanswered questions' looked at surrounding incident on Oct. 17 that led to 40 arrests

COLE HOBSON

TIMES & TRANSCRIPT

The New Brunswick Anti-Shale Gas Alliance is asking the provincial government for an independent, public inquiry into events surrounding the Oct. 17 clash between shale gas protesters and the RCMP that led to an eruption of violence and 40 arrests along Route 134 near Rexton.

The group believes the people of New Brunswick have a right to know the reasons behind the escalation in the use of force used by RCMP, with the group saying there are 'many unanswered questions' about what transpired along the highway that day.

Jim Emberger, a spokesman for New Brunswick Anti-Shale Gas Alliance, said the discussion in the past couple of months has been about the demonstration and protests, but they want to return the dialogue to the pertinent information and scientific studies surrounding shale gas itself.

Yesterday was International Human Rights Day and the group used the opportunity to echo the concerns expressed in an Amnesty International letter to Premier David Alward and his cabinet dated on Nov. 1.

That letter stated that unless steps are taken to rebuild the relationship with Indigenous Peoples with respect to resource development, further incidents could occur.

Amnesty International said in the letter that this incident 'could have been avoided had the province acted in a manner consistent with its obligations to respect the human rights of Indigenous peoples under Canadian and international law.' The Alliance believes that if Amnesty International is raising concern about human rights issues in New Brunswick, citizens should be concerned as well.